Air conditioner

ABSTRACT

An air conditioner including a casing, a heat exchanger, a cross-flow fan, a rear guide, and a stabilizer installed within the casing in the vicinity of an air outlet so as to be close to the cross-flow fan, wherein the stabilizer has a rib portion.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 2004-23949, filed on Apr. 8, 2004 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an air conditioner having a stabilizer, and, more particularly, to an air conditioner wherein the structure of a stabilizer is improved to reduce noise.

2. Description of the Related Art

Air conditioners are classified into integral-type air conditioners, and separate-type air conditioners in which an indoor unit and an outdoor unit are separated from each other. In recent years, the separate-type air conditioners have been mainly used. An indoor unit of a separate-type air conditioner, as disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-open No. 2003-0067229, comprises a stabilizer which has a folded plate shape, and is located inside an air outlet formed at a casing of the indoor unit.

In general, an air conditioner is an appliance in which a refrigerant cycle, including a compressor, a condenser, a capillary tube, an evaporator, etc., is provided to suck in warm indoor air and exhaust cool air, thereby cooling a room. In a separate-type air conditioner as described above, an outdoor unit thereof comprises a compressor, a condenser, a cooling fan, etc. which tend to generate a lot of noise, and an indoor unit thereof comprises an evaporator, a cross-flow fan, a stabilizer, etc.

The indoor unit of the separate-type air conditioner comprises a casing, which is generally formed at an upper portion thereof with a suction grille, and at a lower portion thereof with an air outlet, and defines a certain space therein. Within the space of the casing, the above enumerated evaporator and cross-flow fan are installed. The evaporator is positioned to face the suction grille, and is adapted to cool warm indoor air entering through the suction grille. The cross-flow fan is installed in the center of the casing so that it is positioned below the evaporator, and is adapted to produce a vortex flow.

Further, within the space of the casing there is installed a rear guide, and the stabilizer. The rear guide serves to ensure a stable constant pressure of the vortex flow produced by the cross-flow fan, and the stabilizer serves to divide a suction region and an exhaust region. The rear guide and stabilizer define an air passage communicating with the air outlet. The rear guide is positioned along a rear inner surface of the casing at a position adjacent thereto, and is curved to form a protruding inflection point at the middle portion thereof. On the basis of the inflection point, the stabilizer divides the suction region and exhaust region.

Considering the operation of the air conditioner configured as stated above, if electric power is applied, indoor air is drawn into the interior space of the casing according to the rotation of the cross-flow fan, and the air drawn into the casing is cooled by the evaporator serving as a heat exchanger, and is exhausted into a room through the air outlet. After circulating in the room, the heat-exchanged cool air is repetitively drawn into the indoor unit of the air conditioner. In this way, the room is maintained in a pleasant state.

The indoor unit of the air conditioner, in consideration of the fact that it is installed in a room, requires a modest exhaust feature wherein a large volume of air current is exhausted in a stabilized state. In the indoor unit of the conventional air conditioner, the stabilizer thereof has a folded plate shape as it extends perpendicularly to an end of a guide surface portion having a constant thickness and a certain area, and is positioned in the vicinity of the air outlet so as to face the cross-flow fan. The stabilizer, however, due to its simple plate shape, is insufficient to stabilize unstable air currents of a dynamic vortex flow produced by the cross-flow fan and, thus, cannot reduce noise as well as increase the volume of exhaust air.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention addresses the above mentioned problem. An aspect of the invention is to provide an air conditioner wherein a stabilizer thereof has an improved cross-sectional shape and arrangement structure, thereby being capable of stabilizing unstable air currents of a vortex flow produced by a cross-flow fan, and of reducing noise without reduction of air volume.

Consistent with one aspect, the present invention provides an air conditioner, an indoor unit wherein said indoor unit comprises a casing formed with an air inlet and an air outlet, a heat exchanger provided within the casing, a cross-flow fan installed inside the heat exchanger, a rear guide for guiding air drawn in by the cross-flow fan, and a stabilizer installed within the casing in the vicinity of the air outlet so as to be close to the cross-flow fan, wherein the stabilizer has a rib portion.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may have a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently recessed.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may have a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently expanded.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may have a triangular cross-sectional shape being flat at one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan and having a height increasing toward the air outlet while being round at a corner of the rib portion which is arranged toward the air outlet.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may comprise convex ribs and concave ribs, which are alternated in a longitudinal direction of the stabilizer.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may form a predetermined angle with a lateral direction of the stabilizer.

The predetermined angle is between 0 and 45 degrees.

Consistent with another aspect, the present invention provides an air conditioner, an indoor unit wherein said indoor unit comprises a casing formed with an air inlet and an air outlet, a heat exchanger provided within the casing, a cross-flow fan installed inside the heat exchanger, a rear guide for guiding air drawn in by the cross-flow fan, and a stabilizer installed within the casing in the vicinity of the air outlet so as to be close to the cross-flow fan, wherein the stabilizer has a rib portion having a convex and concave contour, the rib portion forming a predetermined angle in a lateral direction of the stabilizer.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may have a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently recessed.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may have a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently expanded.

The rib portion of the stabilizer may have a triangular cross-sectional shape being flat at one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan and having a height increasing toward the air outlet while being round at a corner of the rib portion which is arranged toward the air outlet.

The predetermined angle is between 0 and 45 degrees.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above aspect, and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent after reading the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the appearance of an air conditioner consistent with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view illustrating the interior of an air conditioner consistent with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a stabilizer for use in an air conditioner consistent with the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating an angle defined by convex and concave ribs of a stabilizer in a lateral direction of the stabilizer consistent with the present invention; and

FIGS. 5A and 5B are sectional views, respectively, illustrating different cross-sectional shapes of stabilizers consistent with alternative embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the annexed drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the appearance of an air conditioner consistent with the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, an air conditioner consistent with the present invention, more particularly, an indoor unit thereof, comprises a rectangular casing 11, and is mainly installed inside a room. The casing 11 has two suction grilles 12 formed at front and upper surfaces thereof, respectively. Through these suction grilles 12, having a relatively large area, warm indoor air flows into the casing 11. After being cooled by an evaporator 18 (see FIG. 2) installed within the casing 11, the cool air is exhausted to the room through an air outlet 14 formed at a lower end or bottom surface of the casing 11.

One side of the casing 11 is provided with a display unit 13 in order to enable a user to view an operating state of the air conditioner, and control the operation of the air conditioner. A stabilizer consistent with the present invention is installed within the casing 11 in the vicinity of the air outlet 14.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view illustrating the interior of an air conditioner consistent with the present invention. As stated above, the casing 11, defining the appearance of the air conditioner, has two suction grilles 12, one of them being formed at the front surface of the casing 11, and the other being formed along a front edge of the upper surface of the casing 11. These suction grilles 12 have a size corresponding to an area of an associated component installed within the casing 11.

Within the casing 11 there is installed an evaporator 18 in the vicinity of the suction grilles 12. In order to achieve maximum cooling efficiency under a limited interior volume of the casing 11, the evaporator 18 is formed into a folded shape as shown in FIG. 2. In order to allow the maximum amount of indoor air to be drawn into the evaporator 18, the suction grilles 12 are formed at the front surface and along the front edge of the upper surface of the casing 11.

The evaporator 18 is spaced apart from an inner wall surface of the casing 11 by a constant distance, and has a filter member 19 affixed throughout a surface thereof facing the suction grilles 12. The filter member 19 is adapted to catch dust, bacteria, etc. contained in the contaminated indoor air entering through the suction grilles 12. In recent years, various kinds of filters have been used such as the filter member 19 and have been used alone or in combination depending on their various uses.

Within the casing 11 there is further installed a cross-flow fan 20, which is positioned inside the evaporator 18. The cross-flow fan 20 is adapted to perform suction, and exhaust of cool air. In general, the cross-flow fan 20 is widely used in air conditioner indoor units by virtue of its various advantages. The cross-flow fan 20 generates less noise, generates a large air volume, and can define a constant interior angle between an air suction direction and an air exhaust direction. However, the cross-flow fan 20 produces a vortex flow during the suction of air, and it is undesirable to directly exhaust the produced vortex flow into the room. Therefore, in order to lower the pressure of the air, to a certain constant extent, a rear guide 17 is provided near a rear inner surface of the casing 11 of the air conditioner.

The rear guide 17 is in the form of a curve having an inflection point 17 a at the middle thereof. Such a configuration of the rear guide 17 is designed in consideration of the fact that the single cross-flow fan 20 has to perform both suction and exhaust of the air. That is, the rear guide 17, configured as stated above, can divide a suction region and an exhaust region. On the basis of the inflection point 17 a, an upper side region thereof is the suction region, and a lower side region thereof is the exhaust region.

The exhaust region is delimited, on the one hand, by the inflection point 17 a and, on the other hand, by the stabilizer 15. A stabilizer 15 consistent with the present invention is installed within the casing 11 in the vicinity of the air outlet 14 so as to be close to a circumference of the cross-flow fan 20. The stabilizer 15 and rear guide 17 define an air passage communicating with the air outlet 14.

In contrast with conventional simple plate-shaped stabilizers, a stabilizer 15 consistent with the present invention additionally has a rib portion. The rib portion of the stabilizer 15 has an approximately triangular cross-sectional shape, wherein a height thereof increases toward the air outlet 14. Here, the triangular cross-sectional shape of the rib portion is gently curved at one side thereof facing the cross-flow fan 20, rather than being a perfect triangle, in order to stabilize the vortex flow of the air produced by the cross-flow fan 20, and to reduce noise. The gently curved contour of the rib portion, formed at the stabilizer 15, is especially effective to reduce the noise of turbulent flow and to reduce the blade passing frequency (BPF) noise of the eccentric vortex flow produced by the cross-flow fan 20. Because a portion of the stabilizer facing the cross-flow fan 20 has a curved contour, the stabilizer can more effectively disturb the turbulent flow of the air.

In the air passage defined by the stabilizer 15 and rear guide 17 there is provided an exhaust air guidance member 16, which is positioned closer to a lower end of the air outlet 14. The exhaust air guidance member 16 is adapted to adjust the flow direction of air exhausted to the room.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a stabilizer 15 for use in an air conditioner consistent with the present invention. The stabilizer 15 is mounted in the vicinity of the air outlet 14 formed at the lower end of the casing 11 so that the stabilizer 15 extends along a longitudinal direction of the air outlet 14 having an elongated rectangular shape. The stabilizer 15, in spite of its gently curved contour as stated above, still acts as a resistive component to the vortex flow. Therefore, in order to improve the reduction of noise, the rib portion of a stabilizer 15 consistent with the present invention is configured such that a plurality of convex ribs 15 a having a gently curved contour, and a plurality of substantially flat concave ribs 15 b are repeatedly alternated with each other. Such a configuration is also effective to improve injection moldability of a stabilizer 15 having a rib portion.

A part of the vortex flow produced by the cross-flow fan 20 flows along the gently curved contour of the convex ribs 15 a, and the remaining part of the vortex flow flows through the concave ribs 15 b, so that the vortex flow is stabilized and a reduction of noise is achieved. The dimensions of the convex ribs 15 a and concave ribs 15 b may be determined in consideration of the general shape of the air conditioner and of the characteristics of the cross-flow fan, etc.

FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating an angle defined by the convex and concave ribs of the stabilizer in a lateral direction of a stabilizer consistent with the present invention.

The rib portion, more particularly, the convex and concave ribs 15 a and 15 b, are oriented to define a predetermined angle in the lateral direction of the stabilizer 15. In this case, the predetermined angle is between zero and 45 degrees, in consideration of air flow characteristics, etc. of the air conditioner.

Because the rib portion of the stabilizer 15 forms a predetermined angle in the lateral direction of the stabilizer 15 as stated above, it is possible to reduce the generation of noise when the vortex flow produced by the cross-flow fan 20 collides against the rib portion extending perpendicularly to a longitudinal direction of the stabilizer 15.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are sectional views, respectively illustrating different cross-sectional shapes of stabilizers consistent with alternative embodiments of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5A , convex ribs 25 a (constituting a rib portion of a stabilizer 25) have an almost exactly triangular cross-sectional shape rather than the above described gently curved triangular cross-sectional shape. Even in the present embodiment, however, a corner of the stabilizer 25, interacting with the air flowing toward the air outlet 14, is round, instead of forming a sharp corner, in order to reduce noise. Depending on the shape and flow characteristics of the air conditioner, such a configuration of the stabilizer 25 may be more effective for reducing noise.

Referring to FIG. 5B, convex ribs 35 a (constituting a rib portion of a stabilizer 35) have an approximately triangular cross-sectional shape wherein one side thereof facing the cross-flow fan 20 is gently expanded.

Now, the operation and effects of an air conditioner consistent with the present invention will be explained.

If electric power is applied to the air conditioner of the present invention, the cross-flow fan 20 is activated so as to allow indoor air to be drawn through the suction grilles 12, and then drawn into the interior space of the casing 11. The inflow air is filtered to remove dust, bacteria, etc. contained therein while passing through the filter member 19, and heat is exchanged therewith while passing through the evaporator 18, resulting in the generation of cool air.

Then, when the cool air passes through the cross-flow fan 20, although the cross-flow fan 20 produces a vortex flow, the produced vortex flow is stabilized to a certain extent by the rear guide 17, which is positioned along the rear inner surface of the casing 11 of the air conditioner and is adjacent thereto. In a stabilized state, the cool air passes through the inflection point 17 a of the rear guide 17, and flows along the air passage defined by the stabilizer 15 and rear guide 17, thereby being exhausted to the room through the air outlet 14.

In this case, while passing through the gently curved convex ribs 15 a and substantially flat concave ribs 15 b (which constitute the rib portion of the stabilizer 15, and which form a predetermined angle in the lateral direction of the stabilizer 15), the turbulent flow of the cool air is disturbed, and thus is guided toward the air outlet 14 in a more stabilized state, resulting in reduction in the BPF noise of the vortex flow as well as reduction in the noise of the turbulent flow.

As apparent from the above description, the present invention provides an air conditioner wherein a stabilizer thereof, which is installed within a casing in the vicinity of an air outlet, has an improved shape so as to stabilize unstable air flow produced by a cross-flow fan and to induce uniform pressure distribution and flow velocity of air, thereby reducing air flow noise of the air conditioner.

Although exemplary embodiments of the invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims. 

1. An air conditioner comprising: an indoor unit wherein said indoor unit comprises: a casing formed with an air inlet and an air outlet, a heat exchanger provided within the casing, a cross-flow fan installed inside the heat exchanger, a rear guide for guiding air drawn in by the cross-flow fan, and a stabilizer installed within the casing in the vicinity of the air outlet so as to be close to the cross-flow fan, wherein the stabilizer has a rib portion.
 2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer has a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently recessed.
 3. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer has a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently expanded.
 4. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer has a triangular cross-sectional shape being flat at one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan and has a height increasing toward the air outlet while being round at a corner of the rib portion arranged toward the air outlet.
 5. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer comprises convex ribs and concave ribs, which are alternated in a longitudinal direction of the stabilizer.
 6. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer forms a predetermined angle with a lateral direction of the stabilizer.
 7. The air conditioner according to claim 6, wherein the predetermined angle is between 0 and 45 degrees.
 8. An air conditioner comprising: an indoor unit, wherein said indoor unit comprises: a casing formed with an air inlet and an air outlet, a heat exchanger provided within the casing, a cross-flow fan installed inside the heat exchanger, a rear guide for guiding air drawn in by the cross-flow fan, and a stabilizer installed within the casing in the vicinity of the air outlet so as to be close to the cross-flow fan, wherein the stabilizer has a rib portion having a convex and concave contour, the rib portion forming a predetermined angle in a lateral direction of the stabilizer.
 9. The air conditioner according to claim 8, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer has a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently recessed.
 10. The air conditioner according to claim 8, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer has a curved triangular cross-sectional shape such that one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan is gently expanded.
 11. The air conditioner according to claim 8, wherein the rib portion of the stabilizer has a triangular cross-sectional shape being flat at one side of the rib portion facing the cross-flow fan and having a height increasing toward the air outlet while being round at a corner of the rib portion arranged toward the air outlet.
 12. The air conditioner according to claim 8, wherein the predetermined angle is between 0 and 45 degrees. 